People Like Us
by AwkwardTime
Summary: Follow sixteen year old Audrey Matthews and fifteen year old Stephanie Randle as they deal with the chaos of being a teen in the 1960's. The girls, and the gang deal with Alcohol, Drugs, Sex, and Social Rivalry in their own odd ways. Audrey Matthews (Cheyenne) Stephanie Randle (Morgan)
1. Chapter One

_Stephanie's POV_

The bell over the door jingled as I entered the DX gas station. At the counter, my older brother stood flirting with his girl Evie. I rolled my eyes at them as I approached. The ugly broad glared at me. I ignored her. "Is Soda out in the garage?" I asked. Steve peeled his eyes from Evie and scoffed.

Over his shoulder he yelled. "Hey Soda, your cling on is here!" The other teen came running out from the back in all his hot glory. He flashed a stunning smile at me.

"What can I do for you Steph?" He asked. I tried my hardest not to giggle like an idiot.

"I was wandering if you would bring me to the library during your break? I have to do some school thing." Evie scoffed from behind me. It took all I had not to turn and clock her one in the face. Soda glanced at the clock.

"I guess I won't make you walk. I'm-." He was cut off by the voice I hated the most.

"Hey Soda, baby!" It squealed. The young man jumped the counter and spun the blonde around, kissing her on the lips. "Want to come to lunch with me?"

Soda glanced at me. "Well, Steph needs me to drive her to the library…"

"But, I wanted to take you for lunch." She pouted. I didn't give the boy a chance to answer her.

"It's alright, I'll go find Dally." With that, I left the store. I walked cautiously to the Curtis brother's home, careful not to run into any Socs. In the house, I found just who I was looking for. The rough and tough Dallas Winston. He was lighting a cancer stick and watching TV. An open beer sat on the table in front of him.

He looked up at me, taking a long drag of his smoke. "You look like hell." He said, taking a swig of his beer. I glared.

"Gee thanks Dal." I snapped harshly, taking a breath to calm myself before I finished. "I need you to drive me to the library." He snorted, letting the liquid spill from his mouth.

"Are you telling me what I'm going to do, kid?" He asked. I sighed, tucking a strand of my long hair behind my ear.

"You don't have to." I mumbled, sulking off into the room shared by Ponyboy and Sodapop. I collapsed on the bed, just hoping that one of the more easy to talk to members of the gang got back soon. My waiting was short lived, because I dozed off minutes after lying down.

What felt like minutes later, I was shaken awake. When my eyes focused, I found myself looking into the handsome face of Ponyboy. "Oh, t'sup Pony?" I asked him.

Pony sat next to me. "Oh nothing just exhausted. What are you doing in here?" He answered casually. I sighed

"I kind of had a rough night last night." It was half the truth. I did have a rough night the night before; it just wasn't why I was currently in his bedroom. The younger boy sat beside me, pulling up the covers.

"Then get some sleep, there's room for both of us." He put on a goofy grin and lay down, pulling me down next to him. I smiled as I closed my eyes and let sleep take over once again.


	2. Chapter Two

_Audrey's POV_

"Two-Bit, wake up already!" I shook my older brother awake; he had been sleeping off a hangover all morning and I needed him to drive me over to the Curtis'. He pushed my arms away from him and rolled over, mumbling something about how he was in the middle of winning the lottery.

I sighed and walked out of his room. I got dressed and walked into the living room, waiting for Two-Bit to finish his dream about the lottery and there were probably some blondes there, too, knowing my brother.

Finally, I had enough of just sitting around and shouted up to him, "Hey Two-Bit! Mickey Mouse is on TV!" I laughed when I heard him bound down the stairs in a heartbeat.

"Mickey Mouse!" He yelled as he ran into the living room, he was only wearing boxers and paused when he noticed the TV wasn't even on. "Where's Mickey?" he asked, sounding like a lost kid.

"Good, you're up," I said, "I need you to drive me to the Curtis' house."

"Why?" he still sounded like a lost kid.

"Because I have nothing to do, and I can't hang out with my friends? It's either that, or I hang out with Shepard." I smirked at him when he looked at me funny, I knew I had him. "Now go put some pants on, you fool." He ran off upstairs and came back down five minutes later.

On our way down to the Curtis', Two-Bit piped up, "Are you gonna have any way to get home later? I have a date with Kathy tonight."

I looked out my window and back at him, "Uh, I'm sure Darry'll drive me home. He'll be done of work by then."

"Okay, cool."

When we got to the Curtis', Two-Bit opened the door and yelled inside, "Hey Curtis'." We walked inside and sat down at the table. A couple minutes later Ponyboy came down the stairs with wet hair, obviously he had just gotten out of the shower.

"Shush, Stephanie is upstairs." He scolded us, coming over and bro-fisting Two-Bit, then he came and shook his wet hair all over me.

"Ha! Stop it Pony! Stop!" I laughed and gently pushed him away.

"Why is Stephanie upstairs?" Two-Bit asked him.

He leaned up against the counter, "Because we were taking a nap."

"You and Stephanie were sleeping together? Steve is going to kill you!" Two-Bit laughed, I slapped him.

"No, not like that! I came home and she was in my bed asleep, so I wo-"

"Oh so she was waiting for you!" Two-Bit exclaimed, cutting Pony off and laughing even harder.

"You're an idiot. Hey Pony do you have any cake?" I asked. He nodded so I got up and helped myself.

When I sat back down at the table, my idiot brother looked at me and asked, "Hey, where's my cake?" I just rolled my eyes at him.


	3. Chapter Three

_Stephanie's POV_

When I woke up hours later, I was alone in the bed. From downstairs I heard laughter and talking from multiple voices. I quietly crept from the bedroom to go to the living room. "…So Pony here was sleeping with Stephanie when we came in, he tried to deny everything, of course, I knew what was going on…" A loud male was telling everyone. It was obviously the joker of the gang, Mr. Two-Bit Matthews. I could practically see Ponyboy's face go red.

"No, it wasn't like that I swear! We were just sleeping!" He insisted loudly. I walked into the living room. Pony's back was facing me. I ran up behind him and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"Thank you Pony, You are the best!" I squealed. Everyone went silent and I felt eyes boring into my skin. I looked up, right into the furious eyes of my big brother Steve.

Steve started to crack his knuckles. It took me a second to realize that in his head, I didn't just lay next to Ponyboy and sleep. He thought we had actually done stuff with each other. "Ponyboy, you have three seconds to tell me what actually happened!" He growled.

Ponyboy gulped. The rest of the gang was staring at him intensely. "Nothing went on! We just slept! She was already asleep when I came home so I just fell asleep beside her! I swear!" He defended himself. Sodapop laughed loudly and pulled his little brother down, pretending to punch him.

"Little player, huh Pone? I trained you nicely!" Steve whipped a phone book at the brothers and grumbled off towards the kitchen. In the corner of the room, Audrey Matthews was laughing so hard she had gone silent. Dallas and Johnny were staring at her as if she had six heads as they tried not to laugh themselves. Dallas was sitting in the chair, hiding his smirk behind a newspaper. I was embarrassed by the taunting, so I dived over the newspaper, onto him.

"Dallas, make them stop!" I whined. He held back the laughter and shook his head no. "No help what so ever." I muttered, hopping off his lap and stomping off. I left the house to go home, but instead I found Steve sitting on the step. He had his head down with his hands clasped behind his neck. "What's got you Steve?" I wondered, planting myself down next to him. He turned his head slightly to see me.

"You and Ponyboy, you didn't actually….you know…right?"

I shook my head. "God no! I mean, I love the boy and all but, he's more like another brother."

My brother breathed a sigh of relief. He put his hand on my shoulder. "That's good. You're still a, still a…" He was definitely struggling to get the words out, but unfortunately, I knew what he meant.

"Possibly." He glared at me. "Yes, Steve, I am."

"Good, you know I, well I just want, be careful Stephanie." He told me. I nodded. Steve wasn't one too show emotions really, but I knew he really cared.

"Can we go home?" I asked him, he nodded, standing up and jogging to his precious car. I followed, climbing into the passenger seat.

When we pulled up, Steve turned to me. "If dad is drunk, go to my room and wait okay?" I nodded and we went in the house. Sure enough, our father was drunk in the living room, necking with some broad on the couch. Steve pushed me towards his room and it wasn't long before the screaming started.


	4. Chapter Four

_Audrey's POV_

I was finally calming down enough from laughing so hard about what had just went on, and stood up. I saw Steve and Stephanie drive away and felt really bad about what had just happened, but it was funny. I had been laughing so hard that I had fallen off my chair on to the floor right at Johnny's feet. He just looked down at me and smiled.

"So, how's work at DX going?" I asked Soda from where I was standing in the living room, he never spoke about work, but I knew it wasn't bad; he was a big hit with the ladies.

He looked up at me from joking around with Two-Bit, "Good. Sandy came to visit me today and took me to lunch. Glad it's the summer, Auds?" He asked.

I nodded, "Yeah, I hate school." I crossed my arms and sat down in between Dally and Johnny on the couch.

"I like school; I don't know why you don't," Pony said, "I like learning."

"I like school, too!" My brother piped up.

"Yeah, but you go just for kicks. And Pony, you don't have a hard time in school anyways. I hate school because everybody is just so damn dramatic." I stated, crossing my legs over.

Kathy leaned over and whispered something inaudible to Two-Bit; his face broke out into a huge smile, a smile I knew all too well. "Kath and I are going to the drive-in now. Aud, are you gonna be able to get home?"

I looked over to Darry as he walked through the door, who nodded. "Yeah, Darry will take me," I assured him.

"Or she could just crash here," Soda said, lunging at me. I hit the back of the couch and he pinned me down, tickling me. "We'll take good care of her." My face was going red from laughing as I finally got my arms out from under his strong grip and started tickling him back. He fell off me in a lump on the ground beside the couch. Everybody started laughing.

"Okay kiddo. See you later." Two-Bit stood up and messed up my hair, then he grabbed Kathy's hand and they were off.

Before they got out the door I yelled, "Use protection you two!" And I swear I could hear my brother laughing all the way to the drive-in.


	5. Chapter Five

_Stephanie's POV_

When I woke up, I stretched and yawned, turning to look at Steve sleeping next to me. The night before had been a hard one, listening to our father yell at Steve and his broad, so I had opted for sleeping with him instead of alone. I didn't register what the two men were fighting about at that point, so I made myself a mental note to ask Steve on the way to the Curtis house. When I shook the older teen awake, He opened one eye in my direction. "Hey Steph." He greeted. I used my hand to push his jet black hair from his face.

"Good morning. Go get ready for work." I told him as he sat up and stretched.

"Do you need the shower?"

"I'll shower and stuff at Soda's, you have to work." I got up off the bed and left to go into my own room. Still wearing the clothes I had on yesterday, I emptied my book bag, stuffing a new outfit, my makeup and my hair products into it. When I finished, I walked downstairs, where I heard the shower running. In the living room, dad was passed out with his half naked chick on top of him. I rolled my eyes in disgust. Steve walked out of the bathroom ten minutes later, dressed in his uniform vest and jeans. His hair was perfectly swirled.

"I have a date with Evie tonight, so you're going to have to stay with Ponyboy and Darry until Soda gets home." He informed me. I scoffed inside at the childish treatment, but I knew it was for my own safety. If I stayed in the house alone with dad, he would use me as a punching bag. I nodded and ran up to my bedroom, packing an overnight bag as well. I didn't even bother going back to the kitchen when I came back downstairs, I just signalled for Steve and we got in the car. During our drive I asked him about last night.

"Steve?" He grunted in acknowledgement. "What were you and dad fighting about last night?" I asked, hoping he wouldn't say me. Unfortunately, he did. "Why, what did I do?"

He reached over and ruffled my hair. "You didn't do anything kiddo, he just thinks he knows what's best for you. He thinks the gang is dangerous for you, and I just had to remind him that they are more your family than he is." Steve turned the car into the drive way of our friends' house. They were all outside, except for Darry. Ponyboy, Johnny and Dally were sitting on the porch, smoking cigarettes. Two-Bit and Sodapop were play fighting on the yard, stopping as we pulled up. We hopped out of the car and I ran past the rowdy pair on the ground. Steve was holding my two bags. He signalled me towards the house, and we went inside to find Darry reading the newspaper.

"Not gone yet Dar?" I asked him. Usually, he was gone to work by now. He looked at me over the newspaper.

"I fell off the ladder and landed on my shoulder, the boss gave me the week off, paid of course." He went on grumbling about how he couldn't just sit around all day. I walked past him towards the bathroom, running my hand over his shoulder.

"I'm having a shower. You rest that shoulder, and leave the house work and cooking to me today. I'm sure Audrey will help me when she gets here." I told him. In the back of my head, I knew the prankster girl wouldn't lift a finger to help me, and would probably pull a Two-Bit and just get in the way. I got in the bathroom and started the shower, stripping off and stepping into the steamy water.


	6. Chapter Six

_Audrey's POV_

I walked up to the Curtis' and stopped to yell at my idiot brother who didn't wake me up before he came over here. I had been sleeping from staying up almost all night watching television and waiting for mom to come home from the bar. He held his hands up in defense and told me that Stephanie had just gotten here.

I walked inside to see Darry sitting on the big chair in their living room holding an ice pack to his shoulder, giving him an odd look, I asked in mock surprise, "Darrel Curtis, not working? What a sight! Somebody inform the media!"

He smiled at me, "Hello Audrey," he said laughing as I sat down on the couch and turned to the TV.

"Hi, why aren't ya at work, Superman?" I asked him intently. He shifted his hand holding the ice pack and winced.

"Fell off the ladder at work, the boss told me to take the week off and I'll still get pay. Good thing, too," he grumbled on about them being poor as Stephanie came out of the shower with wet hair dripping everywhere.

"Oh, Audrey! Help me clean the Curtis'," I looked from my wet-haired friend back to Darry, and then looked around the living room.

I shrugged, "Looks clean to me,"

"Well that is because your house looks a pig-sty, now help me!" Stephanie started picking things up and putting them back on the shelves and picking up loose clothing pieces from, well, everywhere.

"I live with Two-Bit! What are you expecting?" I defended myself, laughing as I heard my brother exclaim, "Hey!" from outside as Pony, Johnny and Dally were both laughing their butts off. I smiled in spite of myself. Even Darry smiled.

"Audrey I swear, you're just like your brother but in a feminine way," Darry said, shifting in his chair and smiling.

I threw my hands up in the air and sighed as I stood up to grab the clothes from Stephanie to start doing the laundry. I actually liked doing laundry; I thought it was fun just to see all of the bubbles forming. Stephanie was looking at me weird when I was sorting through the Curtis' laundry.

"Are you alright with doing their laundry? I mean, their _delicates_," she whispered to me so Darry wouldn't hear.

"I don't care! You saw Ponyboy naked so screw off!" I shouted.

Darry's eyes instantly shot up and he stared at Stephanie, "What?" He shouted just as Ponyboy walked through the door.

"No! We didn't do anything! Audrey!" Ponyboy shouted to me, I was laughing so hard I was pretty sure I would fall into the piles of the Curtis' soiled clothing that were on the floor.

"What happened?" Darry asked to his youngest brother, who just sighed and sunk onto the couch.

"Long story, but we didn't _do_ anything." And he went on to explain.


	7. Chapter Seven

_Stephanie's POV_

As Ponyboy was explaining the whole story to his older brother who seemed royally angry, I ran out of the house past Dallas, Johnny, and Two-Bit. I stopped in front of the red haired man. "You're sister is a horrible witch!" I screeched.

"Tell me something I don't know, kid." He wrapped both arms around my little frame and lifted me over his shoulder like a flour sack. I screamed and kicked as he carried me up the steps past the other boys. A hand came down on my butt, a hand that obviously belonged to Dallas Winston.

"Hey!" I yelped.

"It's sticking out there little girl, free game." He told me. Two-Bit brought me into the house and placed me on the floor. Ponyboy was nowhere to be seen, Audrey was watching TV and Darry was trying to adjust his position, looking ready to cry from pain. I rushed over to him and gently lifted the weight from his hurt arm. He fixed himself and chuckled.

"Thank you Mommy Stephanie!" He joked, laughing at himself. I made a mental note to not give him any more pain killers and made my way into the kitchen. I filled the sink with hot, soapy water and piled the dishes up.

Over my shoulder I yelled. "Audrey Matthews! Come here please!" I heard a dramatic sigh from the living room, followed by over emphasized footsteps. The older girl entered.

"What do you want?" She whined. I pointed to the drying towel. Audrey rolled her eyes and picked it up. I washed the dishes quickly with Audrey's (reluctant) help. When we finished I glanced at the clock. Ten o'clock in the morning.

"What to help with breakfast?" I asked the other female. She threw the dish towel and walked out with her hands on her head.

"Nope!" She yelled, plopping her lazy butt on the couch next to her equally lazy brother. I rolled my eyes and rooted through the cupboards for two frying pans. I placed them on burners and turned them on, getting the bacon and eggs from the fridge.

I made Darry his bacon, egg and tomato sandwich. I made Ponyboy's hard yolk eggs and for everyone else I made standard scrambled eggs and bacon and dished it all out. "Come get it everyone! I don't deliver!" I picked up Darry's sandwich and carried it out to him, passed the other teens in the room.

"I though you don't deliver? Where's mine?" Two-Bit complained.

I handed the plate to the injured man. "On the counter, so go eat it! He is hurt!" I noticed Ponyboy wasn't there. "Ponyboy Curtis, get your rear in gear and into the kitchen, boy!" I yelled up to the bedroom. Dallas came back holding his plate.

"I like my eggs sunny side up." He told me. I scoffed and took the plate. Dumping the untouched eggs on Johnny's plate, I pulled out to eggs and cracked them into the still on frying pan. They quickly finished cooking, so I slid them on the plate and shoved them towards the hood, which at the moment was clearly enjoying torturing me today.

"Pony, you can do the dishes please?" The younger boy nodded. I went and switched the laundry over and took the already dry load into the living room. Darry looked at me.

"This is the best sandwich ever!" I smiled as I folded the laundry. I felt Darry's sympathetic eyes on me. "You don't have to do all this, Pony and Soda can…" I cut him off

"I live with my father and Steve, I'm used to it, your house is calm compared to mine!" As if to jinx what I said, there was a crash, yelling and laughter from the kitchen. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. It was going to be a long, long, day!


	8. Chapter Eight

_Audrey's POV_

Spending the day at the Curtis' house was awesome because we got to make Stephanie mad all day! We had nothing better to do, so while she was cleaning we followed her around and made a mess.

When Two-Bit and I got home he and Kathy went upstairs and I watched TV until a few minutes later when I started hearing the usual… noises.

I cursed to myself and walked over to the staircase, shouting upstairs, "Hey Two-Bit and company! Keep it down, will ya?"

The incredibly disturbing slowed down as he yelled back down to me, "Lordy! Get outta here, Audrey!" He cussed and the noises picked up, I quickly gagged and covered my ears, running out the door into the cold night.

I silently walked to the Curtis' house once again, watching my back every few seconds because it was dark out and the Socs would be making their rounds already. I did not wanna be their next target.

When I walked in the front door of the Curtis' house, Stephanie was actually sitting down and relaxing for once. Darry was still sitting in his chair but he seemed to have a better range of motion since earlier. Both of them, plus Ponyboy, were talking about some random crap when Pony looked up at me, "Oh, hey Audrey."

I sighed and sat beside Steph on the couch, "Hey Pony! What's up?" I asked, trying to get the sounds of my brother and his girlfriend going at it. I shook my head vigorously.

"Nothing exciting," he flashed a smile at me, "what brings you here?"

"My stupid brother kicked me out of the house because Kathy was over and… Well, you get the picture," I shook my head again, it was just plain gross.

Just then, Soda walked out of the bathroom soaking wet with only a towel wrapped around his waist, he smiled at us, "Well hey guys," he blushed at the audience in front of him and quickly walked back into the bathroom to get some jeans on. He walked back into the living room and leaned up against the chair Ponyboy was sitting in, "What's up y'all?"

Everybody smirked at me as I shook my head and put it in my hands, "Please, don't ask." He nodded, obviously knowing what was probably happening back at my house.

"Wait, you walked here alone in the dark?" Darry asked, trying to sit up but he winced with pain so he leaned back.

"Yes, I did, Muscles. I watched my back the entire way, though, don't worry about me." I assured the eldest Curtis brother, he sighed.

"What time is it?" Sodapop asked suddenly, Stephanie looked at the clock on the wall and answered, "Ten-thirty."

Soda straightened and ran to get his jacket, "Late! I'm late," he went on ranting while frantically searching through piles of clothes trying to find it, "I'm late, I'm late for a very important date." He sounded exactly like the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland.

"With Sandy?" Ponyboy asked; he liked Sandy. Probably only because he didn't know how much of a slut she could be. Soda nodded as he finally pulled his jacket out from the bottom of a huge pile of clothes and slipped it on. I rolled my eyes at the mention of Sandy's name.

When Soda left, Stephanie and I both looked over at Darry and asked, "You're still letting him date Slutty-Sandy?"

He shrugged, "As long as he's happy."

"He won't be happy if he stays with her any longer," I muttered the truth.

"Yeah, Darry, you're kind of stupid," Stephanie agreed, Darry gave her a stern look and started to growl at her before she stood up and pointed at him, "Hey, I cleaned your house, shh."

He settled back down, "You two are lucky you're cute," he sighed.


	9. Chapter Nine

_Stephanie's POV_

Last night, Audrey stayed at the Curtis house because her brother had kicked her out due to….company. Because of this, she slept on the couch, and I stayed in Ponyboy and Soda's room with them. I was already bracing myself for when she told my brother I slept in the same bed as two of three Curtis brother's at once. That would be a show all of its own. I scooted out of the bed, out from underneath the tangle of arms and legs. I grabbed my overnight bag and ran downstairs into the living room. Audrey shot up out of sleep. "Good Morning!" I greeted cheerfully. The girl grumbled and rolled over with a pillow over her head. The door opened and Dallas entered. He had a slight black eye.

"Hey ladies." He greeted, sitting on Audrey's legs.

"Break my legs much, you fatty!" She yelled, hitting him with a pillow. He glared at her and biffed the pillow back, hitting her hard in the face. "What the hell! Stop being such a jerk Dallas!" She growled. The dangerous boy stormed out. I followed him. Dallas doesn't talk about stuff, but I was going to find out if he was at least alright.

He was sitting on the porch, with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. Those things were permanently in his mouth it seemed. "Dally….?"

"Go back inside Steph,." He instructed, without even glancing over his shoulder. I scoffed and stubbornly leaned against a pole.

"The last time I checked, Steve and Darry were the only ones to tell me what to do. " I reminded him. He shook his head and mumbled something about a stubborn brat under his breath. "What's wrong?" I asked. He didn't turn at all. He flashed his hand over his head and I caught a glimpse of his ring. The one his girlfriend, Sylvia had. "What happened?"

"You're too young to understand." He said.

"I am not, Dallas Winston! Talk, now!" I demanded. He slammed his fist on the step.

"Damn it Stephanie! I caught her sleeping with Tim Shepard in his car! He can have the broad for all I care! Now leave me the hell alone!" He stood and spun to face me in a fluent motion. He aggressively grabbed my shoulders and shoved me inside the house, slamming the door. I walked back into the living room, tears in my eyes. Partly from being yelled at, and partly from being grabbed so roughly. I could feel bruises forming. Sodapop was lying on the floor on his back with one foot way in the air, putting a sock on. Audrey was asleep again. Soda glanced at me and froze.

"Stephanie, are you okay?" I shook my head and started to bawl. He jumped up and ran to me, picking me up and holding me tightly. I wrapped my arms and legs around him and cried into his shoulder. The plus side of being as small as me is that even Johnny and Audrey could carry me with the ease of carrying a toddler. I explained to Soda what happened and showed him the finger like bruises on my upper arms. He looked at me softly. "Go get dressed and brush your hair and teeth, you can come to work and see Steve. He put me down and I ran off. I smiled in spite of myself. I was so childlike compared to the rest of the gang and they seemed to like keeping it that way. They kept me from every bad thing they could. I still took care of rumble injuries, but I wasn't there to see them form. I pulled on my skirt and shirt and brushed my hair. I took my tooth brush to the bathroom, and brushed my teeth. I ran out to Soda when I finished, noticing Audrey was now awake. She smiled and said a soft hello to me, not making any jokes for once. I said good morning and left, following Soda to the truck and buckling in. At the DX, Steve was talking to some random Greaser I didn't know. He spotted me and motioned me over, circling the counter. He lifted me onto the high part of the counter and went back to his spot. I stayed there for the remainder of the day.


	10. Chapter Ten

_Audrey's POV_

Spending the day at the Curtis' house was awesome because we got to make Stephanie mad all day! We had nothing better to do, so while she was cleaning we followed her around and made a mess.

When Two-Bit and I got home he and Kathy went upstairs and I watched TV until a few minutes later when I started hearing the usual… noises.

I cursed to myself and walked over to the staircase, shouting upstairs, "Hey Two-Bit and company! Keep it down, will ya?"

The incredibly disturbing slowed down as he yelled back down to me, "Lordy! Get outta here, Audrey!" He cussed and the noises picked up, I quickly gagged and covered my ears, running out the door into the cold night.

I silently walked to the Curtis' house once again, watching my back every few seconds because it was dark out and the Socs would be making their rounds already. I did not wanna be their next target.

When I walked in the front door of the Curtis' house, Stephanie was actually sitting down and relaxing for once. Darry was still sitting in his chair but he seemed to have a better range of motion since earlier. Both of them, plus Ponyboy, were talking about some random crap when Pony looked up at me, "Oh, hey Audrey."

I sighed and sat beside Steph on the couch, "Hey Pony! What's up?" I asked, trying to get the sounds of my brother and his girlfriend going at it. I shook my head vigorously.

"Nothing exciting," he flashed a smile at me, "what brings you here?"

"My stupid brother kicked me out of the house because Kathy was over and… Well, you get the picture," I shook my head again, it was just plain gross.

Just then, Soda walked out of the bathroom soaking wet with only a towel wrapped around his waist, he smiled at us, "Well hey guys," he blushed at the audience in front of him and quickly walked back into the bathroom to get some jeans on. He walked back into the living room and leaned up against the chair Ponyboy was sitting in, "What's up y'all?"

Everybody smirked at me as I shook my head and put it in my hands, "Please, don't ask." He nodded, obviously knowing what was probably happening back at my house.

"Wait, you walked here alone in the dark?" Darry asked, trying to sit up but he winced with pain so he leaned back.

"Yes, I did, Muscles. I watched my back the entire way, though, don't worry about me." I assured the eldest Curtis brother, he sighed.

"What time is it?" Sodapop asked suddenly, Stephanie looked at the clock on the wall and answered, "Ten-thirty."

Soda straightened and ran to get his jacket, "Late! I'm late," he went on ranting while frantically searching through piles of clothes trying to find it, "I'm late, I'm late for a very important date." He sounded exactly like the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland.

"With Sandy?" Ponyboy asked; he liked Sandy. Probably only because he didn't know how much of a slut she could be. Soda nodded as he finally pulled his jacket out from the bottom of a huge pile of clothes and slipped it on. I rolled my eyes at the mention of Sandy's name.

When Soda left, Stephanie and I both looked over at Darry and asked, "You're still letting him date Slutty-Sandy?"

He shrugged, "As long as he's happy."

"He won't be happy if he stays with her any longer," I muttered the truth.

"Yeah, Darry, you're kind of stupid," Stephanie agreed, Darry gave her a stern look and started to growl at her before she stood up and pointed at him, "Hey, I cleaned your house, shh."

He settled back down, "You two are lucky you're cute," he sighed.


	11. Chapter Eleven

_Stephanie's POV_

Ponyboy showed up at the DX just before closing time. I was braiding Soda's hair when he entered, and he couldn't resist laughing. Soda swatted him. "At least she is happy." He defended. He bought his brother a bottle of Pepsi and started cleaning up. When he and Steve finished, He helped me off the counter and let us out before locking the door. We walked as a group back to the Curtis house. On the way, Steve stopped and bent down, picking something up.

"Looks like Johnny forgot his jacket, let's go give it to him…"He stopped, examining it closer. There was a rust coloured stain on the collar, he looked at the ground, there seemed to be more stains on the grass. He looked up and across the field when his eyes fell on a motionless lump on the ground – we all heard some moans.

Soda had reached Johnny first, turning him over to reveal his face all swollen and beaten up. Obviously the Socs had gotten to him; I felt hot tears starting to sting in my eyes before I had collapsed on the ground crying. It seemed that the whole gang had known what had happened because Dallas and Two-Bit were suddenly there while Darry and Audrey were running at us from the Curtis'. I had never seen any of the boys beat up so bad before. Not even Dallas, who sometimes deserved it! Why did it have to be Johnny? The sobs wracked through my body, shaking me so violently it started to hurt. I saw Sodapop lift poor Johnny and start walking to the house. I felt a set of arms lift me. "He will be fine, Stephanie." It was Ponyboy. He lifted me up and carried me back to the house. When we got there, I had stopped crying, but I was still shaking like crazy. I saw Audrey, wide eyed and terrified. She was as white as paper and just staring into space. Everyone was outside except for Johnny of course, Sodapop, and Dallas. Soda came out minutes later and announced that Johnny was sleeping, but was cleaned up. I hung around for a few more minutes, until deciding I wanted to be alone and walked on trembling legs into the house. Dallas was sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. He looked up when he heard me. I hesitantly sat on the other end of the couch, avoiding his eyes.

"What happened to your arms?" He asked. I looked at the badly bruised skin.

"You did that this morning….." I whispered. I peeked at him from the corner of my eyes. He looked guilty as hell.

"I promised the gang I would never lay a hand on you…." He mumbled to himself. He stood up in a rage. "I hurt you, and then I wasn't there for Johnny! Why am I such a screw up?" He punched walls and ranted for a good two minutes. Finally, he stopped and sat next to me, staring me straight in the eye. Before I could blink, his lips were on mine. I was frozen in shock. My first kiss was Dallas Winston. The older boy used his hand to move my jaw and get me to respond to his lips. I was soon kissing back full force, even allowing him to run his hand up and down my side. The dominant boy pushed me down onto the couch, holding his weight above me. It was pure joy, until a voice cleared their throat angrily. Dallas and I separated and looked up. Standing over us, was my brother Steve. His head looked ready to explode.

"What the hell!" He screamed. The rest of the gang came running in behind him, asking what was going on. "Dallas fucking Winston, you are not supposed to lay a hand on my kid sister, especially after beating her up!" He ran over to Dallas, grabbed him from the couch and slammed him up against a wall. The gang ran up to pull my angry brother off of Dallas as Audrey came running over to me.

"Well, okay then," she said with a blank look on her face.

"You know you weren't supposed to touch her!" We heard Steve scream at Dallas as the boys pulled them apart.

"I'll do whatever the hell I please with her!" Dallas screamed back. Audrey left to go back outside. I curled up into a ball and covered my ears, the way Steve taught me too when I was little.

"If you touch her one more time Winston, I will kill you and I am not scared of prison!"

"Why don't you let her control her own emotions? Let her tell you. If she says it felt good, you can leave me the hell alone. If she says it was bad, then you get your wish." Everyone went silent and turned to me. I looked at them and Dallas asked me how the kiss felt.

I replayed every detail of the kiss in my mind. "It was….." Steve looked like he knew he was going to win this. "I don't know, okay!" I yelled. Steve's expression was unreadable. Dally was looking at the ground. I grew scared of how Steve would react and ran off to one of the bedrooms. I didn't know whose room I was in; I just jumped on the bed and hid in the covers. I heard the door open. The person stood silently for a moment.

"You're alright, Steph." They finally said. I knew it was Sodapop from the sound of the voice. I pulled the blanket from my face. The gorgeous boy grinned and leaped onto the bed. "Darry is going to be so mad at you for not asking to be in his room." He whispered, pushing my hair behind my ear. I was shaking, terrified form the current fight between Steve and Dallas. Soda must have realized that I wasn't in the mood to talk. He went to the door and yelled, "Dar, you're sleeping with Pony tonight!" He walked back and got under the covers. "Go to sleep, Steph." He whispered, I obeyed quickly, falling asleep in his arms.


	12. Chapter Twelve

_Audrey's POV_

I sat on the front steps alone thinking about what happened. I could hear Steve and Dallas yelling back and forth and the guys trying to keep them from killing each other.

Dallas had kissed Stephanie, and judging from the look on her face, she had liked it. I felt betrayed because she knew my feelings towards Dally and she liked Soda! I silently cursed to myself even though it wasn't needed. I could scream as much as I wanted and nobody would hear me over Steve and Dally.

After a few minutes I had walked back inside the house, the yelling had died down and they were just cussing to each other. I went to check on Johnnycake and he was still passed out cold. The poor kid, nobody hurts my baby.

I looked around at the tense scene in front of me and noticed by surprise that Soda and Stephanie weren't there. "Where is Soda?" I asked Ponyboy, not caring at the moment where Stephanie was. He looked up at me and I noticed his eyes were red and swollen.

"Soda's in Darry's room with Stephanie," he replied quickly, going over to sit beside the beaten Johnny. I nodded and mumbled, "That slut." She was not my favourite person right now.

I looked over to where Two-Bit was standing, his normal crazy eyes were dark and he looked like he was going to pull his switch on any one of them. I slowly made my way towards him, nudging him gently, "Two-Bit, can I talk to you?" I asked him, he slowly turned towards me and nodded, probably thankful he could get out of that mess. I knew he liked fights but not between members of the gang. We walked outside and he sat on the front steps.

"Go ahead, kid," he told me. I stood in front of him kind of nervous about how he would react to this.

"I, uh," I started off, looking down at my hands, "like Dallas, maybe?" My brother's eyebrows cocked and he gave me a smirk.

"I knew something was up, you're never one to walk out of a room that is full of that much excitement." I nodded and sat down beside him.

"I don't know how to process everything, though," I mumbled and started picking at the paint that was peeling off of the old wood. "I mean, Stephanie liked kissing Dally and she knew that I liked him. I don't know, but I always kind of knew he would go for her instead." I sighed.

Two-Bit gave me one of his brotherly hugs, "Aw, kiddo, Dal would be really stupid not to like ya," he gave me a nuggie and I shook him off of me, "and we all know he thinks things through… sometimes."

"Yeah," I agreed, feeling a bit better but I was still angry at Stephanie, "let's go home now, too much excitement for one day." I sighed and stood up, my brother walked with me on the way back home, playing with his switchblade that he admired so much.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

_Stephanie's POV_

I avoided pretty much everyone for three days after that kiss. I mostly just stayed home. Currently, I was at my own house, hiding away in my bedroom, when someone knocked on the door. "Stephanie Anna Randle, unlock this door!" Steve yelled. He had been trying to get in all morning.

"Go away, Steve!" I yelled back. He pounded hard on my door.

"Get out here! You can't stay locked up forever!"

"Yes I can! I'm not coming out, you're mad at me!" It was silent on the other side of the door.

"Aw shoot kid, I ain't mad at ya." Steve said in a softer tone. I crept to my door and unlocked it.

"You're not?" I asked. He shook his head and stepped in the room.

"No way, you're fifteen, kissing is going to be second nature to you soon enough." He wrapped his arm around me in a headlock. "Now, get decent, you're entering the real world again!" I pushed him off me and kicked him out of my room. With a quick shower and a little makeup, we were out the door on the way to the DX. When we got there, I spotted Sodapop talking to a familiar redhead. Audrey. She looked at me with cold eyes, making me turn on my heel and leave, wondering how her and Two-Bit were related. I walked away from the gas station with my arms crossed over my chest and my eyes on the ground. I was so lost in thought, I walked right into someone.

I fell to the ground and glanced up. It was Tim Shepard. "Gee kid, watch it will ya?" He growled. I stood up, dusting myself off. "Hey you're uh, Steve Randle's sister, aren't you?" I nodded. I was a little shy around the tough greaser. "Yeah, Dally told me about you, I never met ya though. I hear your brother keeps you under tight security." I nodded again, staying silent. "I see' not much of a talker, huh? Well, see you around kid." He waved and walked off. I kept walking, all the way to the Curtis house. Ponyboy and Johnny were sitting on the steps. Johnny still looked awful from the beating the Socs had laid on him. He was really quiet and much more jumpy now as well, always shaking. The two boys looked at me.

"You're alive!" Ponyboy yelled, running to me. He picked me up and spun me. Johnny stayed siting. When I steadied myself, I walked up to him and knelt down.

"Hey Johnnycake." I used my hand to gently sweep his long hair from his eyes. "How are you feeling?" He looked me in the eyes. His large dark eyes were so scared and sad, it broke my heart.

"I'm okay." It was a lie, but at least he said something. I stood up and hugged him lightly. He touched my waist gently with his hand, his version of a hug.

"Is anyone else home, Pony?" I asked, straightening up. He shook his head. "Oh, well okay then. I'm hungry, what about you guys?" The boys nodded and stood, looking at me. "Oh so I'm making the food, okay then." I led them into the kitchen and pulled out bread and sandwich stuff. I made each boy a BLT sandwich, passing it to them.

"You spoil us, Steph." Pony smirked, taking a bite. Johnny muttered a barely audible thank you. The door swung open and someone entered. Dallas and Two-Bit must have sensed I was cooking because from the hall I heard them scream. "Bacon!" And run into the kitchen. I laughed.

"Give me food!" Two-Bit demanded, punching the table. I walked over and slapped him with a spatula.

"You ain't gettin' nothin' but a whoopin' if you ask like that!" I scolded. He pouted and sunk down in his chair. I could feel Dallas' eyes on my back as I moved around the kitchen, preparing two more sandwiches and setting them in front of the two new boys.

"So," I heard Dallas say. I was trying to avoid his eyes. "You're back?" He asked me.

I nodded once and started cleaning up. "Steph, leave that mess, I'll get that." Ponyboy told me.

"No it's okay" I continued cleaning up. I felt someone place his hand on my waist, and the dish cloth was removed from my hand. I spun and looked up to see Ponyboy.

"I said I got it." He repeated in a soft voice. I smiled and sat down with the others. I beamed to myself, thinking about how amazing these boys were and how lucky I was to have them around.

"What are you smiling about, Randle?" Two-Bit asked, taking a swig of the beer I had gave him earlier.

"Just thinking about some friends of mine." I replied.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

_Audrey's POV_

I had been hanging out with Soda at DX for the past few days after the incident between Dallas and Stephanie because he was really the only one I could talk to about it. I couldn't even talk to my own brother because he can't be serious enough to actually understand it. And Soda understands everybody.

I was also was doing it to piss off Stephanie.

It was about the beginning of the afternoon when she walked in with her brother, it had been days since anybody had really heard or seen her. Soda and I had been in a very stupid conversation about something to get my mind off of everything. I was actually enjoying myself; he had been making me laugh so hard my sides were starting to get sore. He'd even shoo the girls away if they were only there to flirt with him. I remembered him teaching me how to pump gas and I had said something so sarcastic that he was doubled over laughing so hard, "Man, you and Two-Bit really are related," he said. His smile was the most gorgeous thing I'd ever seen; it was the first time I had actually noticed it.

We both heard the bell over the door chime, and looked to see who it was. Sodapop pulled me over the counter when he saw Steve and jumped up from behind it, jumping on Steve. They were both enjoying themselves too much to notice that Stephanie had stormed out of DX. I have to admit, it was probably because I was giving her a major stink-eye. I couldn't help it; when I'm angry at people I ignore them and give them the stink eye.

And I may have been jealous because she kissed Dallas.

I was surprised when Steve was actually talking to me and acknowledging me, I was thinking that he would probably ignore me like I was doing to his sister, I think everybody kind of knew by now that I had a "thing" for Dallas. Knowing my idiot brother, he probably said something. Steve had seen me the past few days with Soda and started asking me today how I was feeling. Apparently I had looked a bit depressed to him, which I was, a bit. But I assured him that Soda was making me feel a bit better, which he was, a bit.

"Hey Aud," Steve said as he walked over to me, pulling me into a hug.

"Hey," I replied, I hadn't been able to look Steve in the eyes lately so I avoided doing that whenever I could.

"You alright there, girly?" He asked me, taking me by the shoulders and examining me. I nodded.

"Yeah, I'm cool," I answered quietly, still avoiding eye contact. I could tell by the look on his face that he didn't believe me.

"The gang misses you; Stephanie hasn't gone to see them in forever. She feels really bad about what happened. She didn't mean for it to," he sighed and went to the garage part of DX to work on cars as I stared after him in shock. That's when Sodapop came galloping back.

"Audreeeey!" He shouted, "Can you pump the gas for me?" He pouted and opened his eyes wide. I laughed.

"Were you even paying attention the last time I tried doing that? More gas went on the ground then in the car!" I leaned against the counter. "You go do it you lazy bum." He smiled at me.

"Steve can," he winked. We both heard Steve shout, "No Steve can't!" I laughed even harder.

"Sodapop you're gonna be the death of me," I told him, steadying myself from almost falling over.

"Well we don't want that now, do we?" He asked, reaching over to tickle me. I started laughing even harder, that is, until Sandy walked in. Sodapop instantly straightened and jumped up to kiss her as I scowled. She was the most annoying thing ever.

"Hey baby!" She squealed as he picked her up bridal-style and carried her behind the counter so all three of us were there. I rolled my eyes as she looked at me, "Hey, you're Two-Bit's sister, right?" She asked me, her voice like nails on the chalkboard.

"Yes," I answered coldly, Soda gave me a look that told me to be nice. I sighed, "Yes, I am Two-Bit's sister. Audrey."

She looked confused for a moment before exclaiming, "Oh! Yes, I know you. I heard you like Dallas Winston. Good luck," she shrugged before turning back to Soda and flirting with him. I looked at my feet before jumping up over the counter and leaving, mouthing an apology to Soda for leaving so hastily.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

_Stephanie's POV_

I hung out with the four boys the rest of the day. Dallas and I had made up, and he had loudly declared that he was now going to be as protective as Darry, and that's scary. He was a bit drunk when he did that (by a bit, I mean loaded, as was Two-Bit.) Darry was the first of the others to get home. As he walked through the door, I rushed to take his tool bag from him. When he sat down, I ran to his side. "How was your day, Darry?" I asked cheerily. He smiled at me.

"I'm glad to see you came out of hiding, kiddo. I had a great day." I smiled.

"That's good. Are you hungry or anything? Want the paper?" Darry looked at me funny.

"The paper would be great and a slice of cake if there is any left. What's gotten into you?" I shrugged and walked off.

"Who wants another beer?" I ask the boys. Two hands shot in the air. I laughed and went to the kitchen, grabbing the order and delivering it. Ponyboy and Johnny were sat in the corner, staring at their drunken friends uncomfortably. The door opened and shut and in walked Sodapop, Steve and Audrey. I ran at my brother and he scooped me up in a hug.

"I thought you would go home after you left the station." He told me, placing my on the ground.

I shrugged, quickly hugging Sodapop as he ran past. "I got stopped by Tim Shepard today." I told him. Steve tensed.

"Yeah, what was he saying?" He asked. There was an edge to his voice.

"Nothing much." I mumbled. I heard Audrey ask Johnny how he was feeling. He replied that he was fine. "No he isn't." I contradicted. Audrey stiffened.

"Did I ask you? I didn't think so!" She snapped. I grit my teeth and made a strangling motion behind her back. I saw the boys glance around at each other. Darry and Steve stood, Steve grabbed Audrey by the waist and hoisted her up under his arm. "What the hell Steve!" I felt myself be lifted and carried off. I flailed my legs, kicking at Darry. The two tossed us in the kitchen and slammed the door. I tried the handle, but it wasn't budging.

"Now you to settle your issues, or you're not allowed out!" Sodapop shouted. I sighed and leaned my back against the door; Audrey was in a chair at the table.

"It's you with the problems." I mumbled to no one in particular. Audrey's head snapped up to stare at me.

"Yeah, I do have problems, and my main one is you!" She seethed. I scoffed.

"What did I do to you?"

Audrey stood fast, knocking the chair down. "You know damn well what you did, tramp! You know I like Dally, and you sucked face with him, right on that couch if you don't remember!" She made a motion to the living room.

"You think it was me! Yeah, totally, I threw myself at him. No! He kissed me! I wasn't even responding to it until he made me!" I yelled back, throwing down the chair next to me.

"Well you seemed to be loving it!"

"And you seemed to be loving Sodapop, you know I like him!"

Audrey seemed stunned. "So, you don't like him?" She asked, I sighed and leaned against the door.

"I have no idea anymore…" The two of us looked at each other. "I'm sorry!" We both cried simultaneously. We heard the boys cheering and the door opened, causing me to fall on my back.

"You suck Steve." I said as he laughed at me. I couldn't help but laugh myself. I was just happy that everything was back to normal.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

_Audrey's POV_

I wasn't real upset or angry anymore; just glad things were all cool with Stephanie and me. Let's face it, she was the only female friend I had, all the other girls at school thought I was a freak, and all the greaser girls and I weren't as close as Steph and I.

We went back into the living room where Dallas and Two-Bit were being drunks as usual. Johnny sat on the floor in front of the couch and I sat on the couch behind him, gently playing with his hair. I whispered down to him, "You sure you're alright?" He slowly nodded and I stood up quickly.

"Did you guys get those Socs who decided to do that to Johnny?" I asked the boys in front of me, an edge in my voice. Steve shook his head and my blood boiled but I decided to sit back down before I blew my top. "Nobody does that to my baby!" I mumbled. Johnny looked up at me.

"Um, Audrey? I'm older than you," he stated.

"Yes, but you're still my baby." He nodded and smiled, the first time since the jumping.

Dallas and Two-Bit started blasting the stereo to Elvis and tried getting all of us to dance. They didn't need to ask Soda twice, he was up and bouncing around the room right along with them. Steve and Ponyboy both couldn't resist the excitement around them and were soon up there, too. Pony rushed over to me and started pulling on my hands begging me to join. I shook my head but finally gave in and went to dance with him. Johnny had moved to talk to Darry because Darry doesn't like fun and Johnny was still too sore to dance. Dally stumbled over to Steph, beer in hand, and started pulling her up off the couch.

"Dallas! I don't dance!" She yelled over the blasting sound of Jailhouse Rock playing.

"Come on, Doll. You sure do dance," he slurred back to her, taking the last chug from his bottle and placing it on the table beside him. He grabbed both her hands and she pulled away quickly.

"No, Dallas. No dancing for me," she stood up and ran over to Darry, jumping in his lap, "Save me from these crazy drunks!" She called, curling up into a ball. Dal just shrugged his shoulders and went back to dancing.

We had spent hours like that, Johnny and Darry were having their own fun and we had successfully gotten Stephanie to join us on the "dance floor". I was having the time of my life with my best friends and I couldn't think of anywhere else I would rather be. At one point I had stopped dancing suddenly and Two-Bit asked me in a slur why, I just shrugged and told him that I wanted to capture the moment.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

_Stephanie's POV_

Peace had finally been restored in the Curtis gang. It had been two days since Audrey and I had made up, and our bond was stronger than ever. Today, it was just me, Dallas, Johnny and Ponyboy hanging out. We were sitting around the Curtis living room, not really doing a whole lot. "Does anyone have any idea what to do?" Ponyboy asked. Dallas spoke up.

"Let's go visit your brother." He said.

I looked at him "Soda isn't working today." I stated.

Dallas laughed at me. "I meant Darry, I know where he is working today." He stood up and walked to the door, forcing us to follow. We walked down the street and over two blocks, until we saw a house crawling with construction men. When we stepped on the lawn, a young guy, around Darry's age spotted us. He was okay looking; you could tell he was a greaser. He walked over and looked me up and down, smiling in a creepy way.

"What can I do for ya, little lady?" He ignored the boys completely. I stiffened.

"Darryl Curtis please?" I replied quietly. He laughed and poked me in the side.

"Aw, you're so shy." He poked me again and again, getting closer to my chest. A deep and familiar voice broke in and stopped him though.

"Leave her alone, Will." Darry strode up behind the guy, who was I guess named Will. When I saw him, I ran. He picked me up and hugged me as he spun me. "Hiya baby, what brings you here?" He spotted Dallas and Ponyboy as he placed me on the ground. "Hey boys, I was just about to take my lunch break."

"Let's go to the DX, Steve should be there." Dallas suggested. Darry nodded, taking off his tool belt and yelling to his boss, who gave him the thumbs up to leave. He turned to his co-worker. "Don't let me catch you touching that little girl again, got it?" He pushed me off towards the road. The four of us laughed and joked all the way to the DX. Steve was outside, pumping a car full of gas and talking to Evie. I poked Ponyboy in the arm and made gagging noises, causing him to laugh and catch Steve's attention. He pulled the pump out of the car and put it back, wiping his hands on his jeans.

"Look what the cat dragged in." He called, catching a glimpse of me. He jogged over and swung me up. "Here's my favourite girl!" He cheered. I looked at Evie over my brother's shoulder. By the look on her face, she was angry. She fixed her tight clothing and walked over, wrapping her arms around Steve's neck.

"I thought I was your favourite girl?" She pouted, nuzzling his neck. Steve moved away.

"Evie baby, you're my second favourite girl. My sister is always number one." He said obviously. Evie was fuming.

"Your sister can't…" She leaned in and whispered to him. His eyes widened with each word. I rolled my eyes. Steve didn't know I didn't like Evie, but everyone else did. I finally got sick of here and tapped her shoulder, making her face me with a snotty look. "What do you want, kid?" I rolled my eyes at her.

"Evie, just go away." I flicked my hand in her face in a shooing motion.

"Excuse me, but I can do whatever I want. So go play hopscotch, and leave the big kids to play." She mocked my shooing motion.

"No one likes you, get the hell out!" I screamed. Everyone turned to look at me. I heard Dallas comment that I had been spending way too much time with Audrey. Evie turned and left without a word. Steve looked at me in surprise.

"She was annoying me anyway, good job kiddo!" He gave me a one armed hug, "But, I don't want to hear that mouth again, got it?"

"Got it." I mumbled, walking off towards the station. The others followed me. "I'm thirsty." Steve sat a dollar on the counter and passed me a bottle of Coca-Cola, and Pony and Johnny a Pepsi. The other two looked at him expectantly.

"Hey, I only by for the little ones, you bums can buy your own." He told them as he walked behind the counter. I hopped up to sit on it, but failed. Darry lifted me and sat me on the counter.

"Thanks, Darry," I said, smiling up at him. He smiled back down at me and then asked, "Where's Pepsi-Cola?" By Pepsi-Cola we knew he meant Sodapop. Steve just shrugged.

"Left here a couple of minutes ago to go home," he answered. Just then, the phone behind the counter rang, he picked it up, "DX Station… Yes… Yes he is…" he covered the mouth part of the phone, "Darry it's for you," he said. Darry reached over and grabbed the phone.

"Hello... Yeah… What?" His voice was strong, "Okay I'll be there in a few." He handed the phone back to Steve and turned around to tell everybody, "Sodapop got hauled in; he's at the station now." We all kind of looked around at each other before I jumped off the counter and Steve jumped over it, yelling behind him that he'd take the rest of the day off and nobody stopped him. We all ran out of DX to a few blocks away where the Police Station was. When we got there, sure enough, there was Soda sitting there.

"Hi guys!" He said cheerfully, waving to us, I couldn't help but smile back to him. Darry rushed over to the cop standing beside Soda.

"How long'll he be here?" He asked him, staring down at Sodapop with hard eyes. Sodapop just laughed and leaned back in his chair.

"Only a few nights. Public disturbance, he was caught poking hobos with a stick. He was with someone else he said, but she left when she heard the sirens."

"Yeah, that's our friend, Audrey. So how long is a few/" Darry asked. My eyes were tearing up.

"Three days." I cried then. Yes, I'm a cry baby sometimes, but Sodapop was one of my best friends, I always cry when my friends get in trouble. Even Dallas. Sodapop looked at me and dropped the grin.

He stood and hugged me. "Aw jeez Steph, don't cry. It's only three days."

"Three days is too long." I said as I retreated. He gave me a lopsided grin. We said good bye to him and left, going back home. Audrey and Two-Bit were on the couch. They were watching Mickey Mouse. They looked at us when we entered.

"Soda got hauled in; he's in for three days." Darry blurted.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

_Audrey's POV_

It was my fault Soda got hauled in, it was my fault. He had gone to work at DX earlier today and left an hour after Steve had gotten there around twelve. I had come by the station just when Steve was getting there, and Soda wanted to know if I could hang out with him. We were heading over to get Two-Bit when we were just joking around and poking hobos with sticks. Apparently it's qualified as "Public Disturbance" and somebody and called the cops. The moment I started hearing the sirens I started begging Soda to run. He told me he would and then pushed me forward so I ran, apparently he didn't run.

I just sat there, stunned for a moment about what I had just heard, thinking about what had happened earlier. Darry had excused himself to his bedroom and the rest of the gang all sat in the living room. I looked at Stephanie from the corner of my eye; she looked like she had been crying, which she always does when any of us gets in trouble with the law. I had never cried over one of us getting in trouble, but suddenly it was like I couldn't stop the tears. They salty-warm drops started running down my cheeks against my will as I looked down and started brushing them away hurriedly.

I felt a hand on my back, "Audrey, are you okay?" It was Ponyboy, he started rubbing gently on my back. I soon felt everybody's eyes on me and slowly looked up, continuing to cry.

"Yeah, Pone, thanks," I said, my voice shaky as I looked around the room at everybody, their eyes soft. Stephanie and Two-Bit walked over to me and knelt down.

Two-Bit looked into my eyes, "Come on, kid, it wasn't your fault." I sniffed.

"Yes it was! I thought he right behind me!" I told him, throwing my head into my hands and crying some more. Stephanie stood up and gave me a hug then went back to her brother. She and Dallas had been flirting a lot lately and I really didn't care, which surprised even me. I was beginning to get over him, knowing that I wouldn't have a chance with him. He wasn't my type.

"No, it's not," Ponyboy started, "he didn't go because he knew he'd get caught either way. He made you run because he didn't want you to get in trouble."

I stopped crying suddenly and looked up and Pony, his eyes were sincere and he smiled at me faintly. "Thanks, Pony." He patted my back.

Just then Two-Bit looked at me sideways, cocking an eyebrow, "Audrey, you never cry when one of us gets hauled in, even if you were in on it," he paused, "Why now?" I felt everybody eyes on me once again and I turned a bright shade of pink.

Stephanie stood up suddenly, "No way!" She was laughing, "She likes Sodapop!" Everybody turned back to me and I had my head down again. Everybody started laughing, including me.

"Nobody speaks of this, alright?" I told them all.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

_Stephanie's POV_

It was a depressing wait for Sodapop to get home. Even Two-Bit wasn't pulling his usual jokes and pranks. We all had to admit that Sodapop Curtis was definitely the life of the gang. Steve was moodier than he has ever been, and that's plain scary! We were all off today, just hanging around the Curtis house, as usual. Ponyboy was the only brother with us, Darry was at work and Soda was still in the cooler. It was a pretty laid back day, until Two-Bit opened his mouth. "Let's get ripped!" He yelled. I rolled my eyes and shoved him, since he was sitting on the floor against my knees.

"Two-Bit, you always want to get ripped." I laughed. He just shrugged. Dallas sat up a little straighter in his seat.

With a smirk, he scanned us over. "Yeah. Yeah, let's do it!" He looked at Ponyboy, Johnny, Audrey and I. "Let's get them drunk." Two-Bit and Steve looked at us and back at the hood.

Two-Bit whooped. "It's a right of passage, little sister. Time to prove you're not adopted!" Audrey laughed loudly and agreed. I didn't feel right about drinking, and I could sense my brother wouldn't like it at all either. Sure enough, I was completely right.

"You hoodlums are _not_ getting Stephanie drunk!" He argued them. The two boys waved their hands in dismissal and looked at Ponyboy and Johnny.

"Come on boys, be men!" They urged. Johnny shook his head no, like I knew he would. Everyone looked at Ponyboy.

"Sure, Darry and Soda aren't here." He shrugged. The others cheered and all eyes fell on me. Steve was shaking his head no. I looked at every one of them, nodding and urging me to agree. Finally, I sighed and gave in.

"Only a little bit though!" I reasoned. Dallas went to hunt down some booze. Steve stayed in the corner, pouting about how he said no. We turned up the radio and danced around until he came back. When he showed back up, he sat the case of beer down on the table and pulled out a bottle of vodka to go with it. As we got into the alcohol, a beer was shoved into my hands. I opened it and took a small sip. It tasted weird, but not too bad.

One hour, one bottle of vodka and half a case of beer later, the seven of us were completely lost. Dallas had somehow managed to persuade Johnny into trying some vodka, and it didn't take long before he was in the corner giggling at every little thing. Audrey and Steve were standing up in front of the radio, arm in arm, singing Elvis very badly. Dallas and Two-Bit were clumsily wrestling on the floor. I was sitting on Ponyboy's lap while he rubbed his hands on my thighs, hiding his hands every time Steve looked at him. "This, this is…Johnny!" Audrey slurred, throwing herself on top of the small teen. "Say hi, Johnny!" She picked up his hand and waved to us with it. Two-Bit stopped fighting Dallas and looked at her.

"You're drunk Auds..Go, go home." He told her, trying and failing to be authoritive, because the redhead held on tighter to Johnny and pointed to him.

"And you're ugly so shhhh!" She yelled. I burst into laughter at this, falling off Ponyboy's lap. He bent down and clumsily pulled me back on to him. As he tried to kiss my neck, Dallas shot up.

"MINE!" He screamed, launching his self at us. He wrapped one arm around me and turned towards Audrey and Johnny. "And she is mine too!" He dragged me over to them and grabbed hold of the girl. He popped on the couch, us in his lap, and glared daggers at the boys. "Keep off." He warned. I giggled, leaning up and kissing his cheek. Next to me, Audrey broke loose.

"I'm not yours, I'm mine!" She ran like a crazy woman to the kitchen and came back slowly, with a straight face. "Why was I in the kitchen?" I shrugged and sat up to straddle Dally. I ran a hand down his chest, grabbed a handful of his shirt and crashed my lips to his. I heard someone gasp, probably Steve. I felt Dally smirk into the kiss and move his hands down my body, onto my butt.

"Get off her, greaser." Steve yelled from wherever he was. I heard the door open and the music stop. I pulled away from Dallas and we both looked up. Standing in the doorway, was a very furious looking Darry and a happy and bouncy Sodapop. We all stood up and ran, or stumbled, at Sodapop, group hugging him. Darry stood with his hands over his chest.

He cleared his throat, getting all our attention. "What the hell is going on here?"


End file.
